Author: Laurie Ferguson

Being a business owner means being a leader. But being a great leader is not something that comes naturally to most of us. Usually, when we are heading teams of people, something slips through the cracks and this may cause massive damage to your team’s trust in you. In this post, we look at 5 ways you can be the best leader for your team.

Get in Touch With the Team

Being a leader means communicating effectively and being in touch with your team and their needs. Transparency is a term that is often used in the world of business, and employees appreciate this characteristic most. Communicating and connecting with your team shows them that their wellbeing is of interest to you.

Inspire Creative Thought

Let your team come face-to-face with new challenges and encourage them to get involved in abstract thinking. This increases employee involvement and overall company morale.

Be a Doer, Not a Watcher

Employees draw their energy levels from those in management positions. If they see the CEO slacking and not involved in the day-to-day of business problems, you could have a trust problem on hand sooner than you think.

Encourage Criticism

Encourage your team to give their feedback on general company ethics and events and even your own management style and company structure on a regular basis. This is key to making sure everyone is on the same page and that you are inspiring your team to bigger and greater achievements.

Encourage Positive Thought

We are what we think, and if you, as a leader, encourage positivity in your team, you will be able to reach the moon. Focus rather on things the team achieved and reward them for that, than complaining about last month’s failures. Employees appreciate a kind word and will thank you for it for harder work.

Running your own business can be very stressful and a full-time job. But practicing a work-life balance is key to being successful, not only at business but also at life. Burnout is also a real threat and working 24/7 could be detrimental to you and your family’s health. In this post, we take a very brief look at 4 ways you can practice a better work-life balance and improve your life in no-time.

Separate Work From Home

Even though this could be difficult when you own your own business, you should strive to never bring your work baggage with you into your home. Keeping your work life and your personal life separate is key to being able to enjoy the time you have to yourself and with loved ones.

Make Time for Yourself

Whether you go for a jog or read a bit, you need some time for yourself. Home life holds its own set of responsibilities and being able to take some time for recuperation should be included in your busy schedule.

Leave the Tech Alone

Have a time and space for you to check your emails and take business calls. You should also have a time and place where these interruptions are not allowed – such as your bedroom or your family room. Stick to this commitment and focus on what is important at the time.

Plan Downtime and Holidays in Advance

Making time for holidays is important. If you don’t commit to planning it ahead, it may never happen as there may always be something that comes up that seems more important at that particular time. Plan and commit to a holiday in advance – after all, everyone needs some complete time-off every now and then!

Did you find some of these tips helpful? What is your favorite downtime activity? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below.

Are you a budding entrepreneur but you just don’t have a clue as to where or how to begin? Maybe you are stuck in a 9-5 job, desperately looking at ways to get out and do your own thing. Whatever your current situation, starting a business can be very daunting if it’s the first time you’ve ever tried to do something like it. Luckily for you, there is quite a few of us who have done the groundwork, so you don’t have to! In this post, we look at the basic steps you should take when starting your first business.

1. Do your Homework

Whether you’ll be delivering a service or selling a product, you’ll need to do some research first. Get to know the market and if there is a need for your product. Include things like geographic and demographics when researching prospects, this will give you an idea of how far your product should go and what type of client you should approach.

2. Draw up a Business Plan

Now that you have a better idea of whether you will be able to generate an income, it is time to draw up an extensive business plan. There are plenty of resources available on the net that will give you a clear idea of what should be included in this document. Remember, if you need to take out a loan, you will have to present your business plan to the bank.

3. Make your Calculations

Finances and accounting is a very big part of running a business. Next, you’ll have to get your finances in order and design a budget for all the overheads you will need to cover in setting up and running your business.

4. Choose a Name

If you are doing it alone or with a partner and you don’t have funds to get professional ad specialists to craft a name, you’ll have to do it yourself. Pick a name that is memorable and will relate to the product and the client. Once you have something worthwhile, register it and you are good to go!

5. Market Yourself

A lot of the work will go into marketing yourself at first. You’ll need to bring yourself and your company to the attention of prospective clients. Relying on word of mouth solely will be a sure way to fail quickly – rather invest in a solid marketing strategy and spend some cash on putting your company on the map.

We hope these tips have guided you through the simple steps you need to take to kick off your first business. Remember, the first two years are crucial, if you have made it beyond that, you should be able to relax and breathe a bit easier.